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PATENTED PEB.9, 1904.

F. M. FILLER. .GOPY HOLDER. APPLIOATION FILED APR. 10. 1903.

N0 MODEL.

THE "emu; PETERS C0. PHOTO-LITMD. WASHINGTDN. n. c.

FRANCIS M; FILLER, OF ST. JOSEPH,

Patented February 9, 1904.

PATENT OF ICE. I

iMISSOURI, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO CHARLIE K. I ERING, OF ST. JOSEPH, MISSOURI.

COPY-HOLDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 751,490, dated February 9, 1904,

Application filed April 10, 1903.

- citizen of the United States, residing at St.

. spring-retainer.

Joseph, in the county of Buchanan and State of Missouri, have invented new and useful Improvements in Copy-Holders,of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates. to copy-holders; and its object is to provide a device capable of holding either a note-book or one or more sheets of copy either for taking stenographic notes or for transcribing the same on a typewriting machine or otherwise.

Theinvention consists in a flat plate of any suitable material having a prop hinged to its back and provided at its upper end with a The spring is covered by a projecting piece on the rear of the plate, preferably of substantially the same thickness as the prop, so that when the latter is folded down the holder will lie fiat on a table.

The retainer is preferably composed of asingle piece of stout wire twisted into a handleloop and having two parallel legs, one of.

which rests behind the plate and has the spring attached to it, while the other lies against the front of the plate'to clamp the book or paper thereto. There is a perforated lug on the back of the plate to receive one end of a supporting-rod, whose other end may be inserted in a socket in a table or desk or formed in a clamp adapted to be attached to a type-writing machine. I

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is aside elevation of my improved copy-holder. Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of the same with the prop folded down and the spring-covering piecepartly broken away. Fig. 3 shows the supporting rod and clamp socket. Fig. 4 shows the desk-socket. of Fig. 2, partly in section.

The plate 1 is a flat rectangular piece of wood or other suitable light substance. Hinged to its back at 2 is a prop '3, which is preferably a flat plate of wood or the like. Secured to the back of the plate at its upper end and near each edge thereof are the bearings 4., in which is journaled a transverse shaft 5. A helical spring6 is coiled around the shaft, having one Fig. 5 is an edge view Serial No. 151,960. (No model.)

end secured thereto and the other end resting against the plate. One end of the shaft projects beyond the edge of the'plate and is provided with a handle 7 and a retainer 8, the latter extending over the front of the plate and pressed against the same by 'the tension of the spring 6. The handle and retainer are preferably integral with the shaft, these parts being conveniently and cheaply made of a piece.

of stout wire twisted into a handle-loop and having two parallel legs, one of which serves as the shaft and the other as the retainer.

The shaft, its bearings, and the spring are covered by a strip 9, of wood or the'like, hollowed out to receive said parts and preferably of the same thickness as the prop 3, so that when the latter is folded down the device will lie flat on a table or on the knee of the stenographer while taking notes.

In order that the holder may be supported in an inclined position above the surface of a desk or table, I provide on the back of the plate a lug 10, preferably of metal, in which is drilled a deep inclined hole, preferably with a conical end, to receive the pointed end of a supporting-rod 11-.

Therod is preferably bent at 12 to give it an ofiset, and its lower end is pointed to enter a socket formed in a suitable socket-piece, such as a casting 13, adapted to be clamped to the frame of a type-writing machine "by a setscrew 14:, or a plug 15, adapted to be let into the top of a deskor table. The bottom of the socket is conical, as shown, the conical ends of the sockets and rod producing suflicient friction to keep the holder in any position to which it is turned. The ofl'setis the rod, giving considerable range of adjustment in this respect.

dle' of the retainer on the right side of the plate; but it may be placed on either side to suit the convenience of the user. The arm 16 of the retainer is made long enough to permit quite a thick note-book .to be inserted under the retainer. The holder with the book in position may be folded and laid in a drawer or other place when not in use, and notes may be taken without removing the book from the holder.

Having described my invention, what I claim is 1. A copy-holder comprising a flat plate, a flat prop hinged to the back thereof, a transverse spring-shaft carrying a retainer and mounted on the back of said plate above the prop, and a cover for said shaft of substantially the same thickness as the prop. v

2. A copy-holder comprising a flat plate, a prop hinged to the back thereof, a transverse shaft near the top of said plate, a helical spring having one end secured to said shaft and the other end stationary, a recessed cover for said shaft and spring secured to the back of said plate and of substantially the same thickness as the prop, a handle on one end of said shaft,

and a retainer carried by said shaft and extending over the front of the plate.

3. A copy-holder comprising a flat plate, a stout wire twisted into a handle-i001) and having two parallel legs, one forming a shaft journal ed across the back of the plate and the other extending over its front, and a spring coiled around said shaft with one end secured thereto and the other end held. stationary.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

FRANCIS M. FILLER.

Witnesses:

J NO. S. EDWARDS, BEN F. HoUs'roN. 

